Press On
“To-the-Point” Communications Courtesy of EDWARDS
Issue 338 — 2016
Unwanted Noise
If you work in an open office, what do your colleagues
complain about most? Unwanted noise. While
these minimalist work spaces reduce visual clutter,
open offices tend to have plenty of audible clutter. For
many employees, it’s a huge issue.
So it’s not all surprising that a new study finds the
most desirable “perk” at work is noise reduction, The
Atlantic’s City Lab reports. You heard right. The key
to workplace productivity and happiness may simply
be more peace and quiet. For those difficult-to-please
millennials, the desire for quieter workspaces even
trumps free food.
Oxford Economics performed the study. They surveyed
1,200 employees who work in a variety of industries.
More than half of those surveyed complained about
noise being a constant issue. Millennials complained
the loudest. They said they either wear noise-canceling
headphones or go looking for quieter spaces where
they can focus. Source: Oxford Economics
Loyalty
Forrester data shows that 80 percent of large
organizations’ marketing leaders said that it’s a top
marketing priority for the next year. Additionally,
loyalty marketers have revealed a desire to shift
from transactional loyalty to more emotional loyalty.
Marketers want a deeper, lasting relationship with
customers that tugs on both emotions and purse
strings. But are they actually executing on it? Forrester
surveyed 60 loyalty marketers from North America to
find out.
Marketers surveyed aspire to, and are investing in,
evolving their loyalty programs and initiatives. They
turn to loyalty to drive multiple business outcomes
including retaining existing customers (of course),
engaging customers, improving customer lifetime
value, enriching relationships, and even acquiring
new customers. Plus, they are invested in their current
approach—literally and figuratively. Nearly 80 percent
of marketers indicated that their programs and
initiatives are effective at retaining existing customers,
and a majority of them think they are effective at
boosting customer profitability, improving share of
wallet, enriching relationships, and enhancing the
customer experience. What’s more, the majority
of respondents plan to increase their investments
in important components of advanced loyalty such
as customer experience, analytics, innovation, and
mobile. Marketers are indeed thinking of loyalty
beyond traditional discounts and points, with a
handful even saying they plan to reduce funding for
promotions and rewards.
Marketers revealed real concerns about the value of
their current programs: Three of the top five challenges
that loyalty marketers face center on maintaining
perceived value, ensuring awareness of the loyalty
initiative, and differentiating their approaches from
competitors in the marketplace. And these concerns
aren’t unfounded. On average, U.S. online adults
belong to six loyalty programs, and are more fickle
than ever. Plus, the marketers Forrester surveyed
indicated that both personalization and measurement
are top challenges; both shortcomings which make it
even harder to command consumer mindshare in an
already crowded environment. Source: Forrester
America’s Sweet Tooth
While many in America are putting their health
first, and we are seeing an increase in the sales of
organic eggs to bagged salads to sparkling water,
we are also seeing an increase in candy sales.
Health trends aside, we see that candy sales are
actually growing and not just because June was
National Candy Month. In fact, U.S. consumers
spent $21.5 billion on candy in the 52 weeks
ended April 30, 2016, and annual sales have
grown 2%-4% over the past five years. And
candy isn’t just a hit during major holidays like
Easter and Halloween, which generates $3.5
billion in sales. Americans are candy lovers
through and through, spending more than $17.9
billion on every day, non-seasonal treats.
So who’s driving that trend? Sweet-tooth
children may be at the top of the list. Nielsen
research from third-quarter 2015 about center
of store sales found that the request for sweets
is highest among families with children under
age 18, with the most purchases coming from
parents of 3-7 year olds (63%) and 8-12 year olds
(65%). As kids reach their teenage years (13-17),
candy sales drop to 54%.
So what types of confectionary treats are
Americans indulging in? Chocolate! This rich
and decadent treat remains the preference
over non-chocolate candies, generating nearly
$11.2 billion in sales in the last 52 weeks. Nonchocolates, however, aren’t far behind. While
Americans purchased $6.7 billion worth of nonchocolates over the past year, up 4.7% over the
previous period, indicating that non-chocolates
are gaining in popularity. Comparatively,
chocolate sales were up just less than 2% over
the last year. Source: AC Nielsen
Eating Habits from the Campaign Trail
After review of the recent finance reports of the presidential candidates, it is interesting to note
what their favorite restaurant was for feeding themselves and staff. Makes you wonder what will be
prepared in the kitchen of the next president. Source: FWX
29
%
Donald Trump – McDonalds was 29% of total followed
by Jason’s Deli & Subway
Hillary Clinton – Dominos was 30% of total followed by
Jimmy Johns & Dunkin Donuts
16
%
30
%
Bernie Sanders – Panera Bread was 16% of total followed by
Dunkin Donuts & Einstein Bros Bagels
Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop
questioning. – Albert Einstein
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